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Autism 200 Series

Autism 200 Series

Autism 200 is a series of free 90-minute classes for parents and caregivers of children with autism who wish to better understand this disorder. Faculty from Seattle Children’s and the University of Washington and community providers teach the classes. Each class includes time for questions.

Classes are open to the general public. There is no need to register in advance to attend. Lectures are held at Seattle Children’s Hospital's main campus in Wright Auditorium. Park free in Lot 1. Enter the hospital through the River entrance, located straight across from the parking garage. Get an entrance badge from the Greeter Desk (bring photo ID).

2015 class details

Autism 206: Transition to Adulthood – Cognitive Behavior Therapy

Thursday, June 187 to 8:30 p.m.Instructor: Felice Orlich, PhD

Cognitive behavior therapy (CBT) is a treatment approach that is commonly used to target deficits seen in teenagers and young adults with autism spectrum disorder. Dr. Felice Orlich from Seattle Children’s Autism Center will define and describe CBT, discuss characteristics of good candidates for the approach and provide information to parents and educations or are interested in pursuing CBT as a treatment option.

Autism 207: Transition to Adulthood – Financial Planning

Thursday, July 167 to 8:30 p.m.Instructor: Linda Hunter Suzman, ChSNC

As children with ASD move into adolescence and on to adulthood, families face many challenges when the structure of school is not available. The realization that many of these young adults may not be able to support themselves, make decisions, have a spouse or live a completely independent life because of their social challenges makes financial planning imperative for families. Special needs parent and financial service professional Linda Hunter Suzman, ChSNC, will define the issues and provide an overview and strategies for life care planning, SSI, general financial and trust plans as well as the new ABLE Act of 2014, passed in December, which allows families to begin 529 plans for disabled family members.

Autism 208: Transition to Adulthood – Lifelong Learning: Enhancing Quality of Life Through Community Engagement

The transition out of the education system and into adulthood involves many layers of planning to ensure a high quality of life and ongoing development for adults with ASD. Dr. Gary Stobbe, director of adult transition at Seattle Children’s Autism Center, and Tammy Mitchel, program manager at the Alyssa Burnett Adult Life Center, will share essential planning tips for the transition into adulthood. Topics will include wrap-around planning for daytime and recreation activities, community integration, housing options and vocational training.

Many children with autism and developmental disabilities are delayed in reaching their toilet training milestones. The usual toilet training strategies are not always effective, leaving parents frustrated and unsure of how to proceed. Dr. Mendy Minjarez, a behavioral psychologist at Seattle Children’s Autism Center, will review best practices in addressing toilet training goals in this population of children. This presentation will include information about toileting readiness, behavioral interventions for addressing toilet training in children with developmental delays, and troubleshooting specific toileting problems, such as fears and refusal.

There is so much information on the internet about autism. How do you separate fact from fiction? Two of Seattle Children’s Autism Center's providers, David Eaton, ARNP, and Jennifer Mannheim, ARNP, will talk about how to read the science so you can make up your own mind. They will cover some of the popular topics today so you can decide if it is a myth or fact.

Autism 211: “If I Had Known Then What I Know Now” – A Panel of Parents of Older Children and Young Adults with ASD

Thursday, Nov. 197 to 8:30 p.m.Facilitator: Katrina Davis, BA

Join Seattle Children’s Autism Center’s family advocate, Katrina Davis, and a panel of veteran parents who will offer an intimate and personal look into their journey raising a child with autism. Parents will share their perspectives, experiences, challenges and joys. What helped? What did not help? What would you do differently? What advice do you have for new parents? Audience participation will be encouraged.

Resources

You can view all Autism 200 Series lectures from the past two years on the Autism 200 Series playlist. For additional resources, visit the Autism Center Resources page or The Autism Blog, authored by Seattle Children's Autism Center. The world of autism spectrum disorders is constantly changing and we at Seattle Children’s Autism Center are eager to share with parents and caregivers what we continue to learn. The Autism Blog is designed to be a resource on autism as well as to give you an opportunity to comment on our posts and engage with our experts.

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Seattle Children’s provides healthcare without regard to race, color, religion (creed), sex, gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, national origin (ancestry) or disability. Financial assistance for medically necessary services is based on family income and hospital resources and is provided to children under age 21 whose primary residence is in Washington, Alaska, Montana or Idaho.